A predawn SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket launch created a photogenic “jellyfish” effect featuring illuminated plumes of exhaust gases in the sky on Thursday, May 21, above Florida’s Space Coast.
The rocket lifted off at 6:04 a.m. — 24 minutes before sunrise — from Launch Complex 40 at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station. After reaching low-Earth orbit, SpaceX’s Starlink 10-31 mission deployed another 29 broadband satellites.
Looking ahead on the calendar, SpaceX has scheduled a Memorial Day morning launch from the Space Force installation. The four-hour launch window will last from 7:41 a.m. to 11:41 a.m. Monday, May 25, on another Starlink mission.
Live FLORIDA TODAY Space Team coverage should kick off about 90 minutes before liftoff at floridatoday.com/space.
For the latest news and launch schedule from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station and NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, visit floridatoday.com/space. Another easy way: Click here to sign up for our weekly 321 Launch space newsletter.
Rick Neale is a Space Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY, where he has covered news since 2004. Contact Neale at Rneale@floridatoday.com. Twitter/X: @RickNeale1
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This article originally appeared on Florida Today: SpaceX rocket creates ‘jellyfish’ above Florida’s Space Coast. See photos.
Reporting by Rick Neale, Florida Today / Florida Today
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